Lotus, the exclusive British-made sports car, is racing into the Buffalo Niagara region with its first official dealership.

As initially reported last winter, Lotus has signed a deal with Matt Serwacki to open a dealership — Lotus of Western New York.

The dealership opens this weekend. It will Lotus’ sole outlet in Upstate New York. There is also one dealership in Manhattan and another in Huntington Station on Long Island.

In February, Serwacki used the Niagara Frontier Automobile Dealers Association car show as coming out party for Lotus. A jet black Lotus Evora S 2+2 sports coupe was on display in the lobby of the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center marking the car makers arrival in the market.

“Lotus is a very niche market, but I think it will do very well in Buffalo,” Serwacki said.

Landing the Lotus dealership rights became something of a personal mission for Serwacki, who said he spent more than two years putting together the data and meeting with Lotus officials in Hetel, England to pitch the region’s case. Lotus, depending on the model, retail in the $65,000 to $90,000 range.

“I had to explain that Buffalo is really an under-served market,” Serwacki said. “It took a little bit of time and effort to bring this all together.”

Lotus, briefly, was sold in Amherst in the 1960s. Since then, those interested in buying a Lotus had to travel to Toronto, Cleveland, Pittsburgh or New York City.

The local dealership will be near the Mike Barney Nissan complex along Sheridan Drive. Serwacki said he will initially stock eight Lotus models, including four new models and four used cars.

Founded in 1948 by English racer and car builder Colin Chapman, Lotus gained fame for both its racing models and street cars. Among other things, the Lotus was featured in the 1977 James Bond movie, “The Spy Who Loved Me.”